


I've Found You

by RachelTikvah



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Warriors
Genre: F/F, Falling In Love, Gender Identity, Lesbian Relationship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-02
Updated: 2019-07-18
Packaged: 2019-11-18 08:08:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 8,709
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18116756
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RachelTikvah/pseuds/RachelTikvah
Summary: The Heroes' Ball is being held in one short week, and Linkle has been invited to stay in the castle during the interim. But she and Zelda find that as they spend more time together, they start to fall for one another. As the day of the ball grows near, can their feelings for each other succeed in stopping an attempt on the Princess' life?





	1. Prologue--Love at First Plight

**Author's Note:**

> I've noticed that there aren't many Zelda x Linkle works on AO3, and that simply won't do. So if they don't exist already, I'll just have to fill the void! This short, multi-chapter fic is about how Linkle and Zelda fall in love shortly after the events of Hyrule Warriors.  
> The kingdom having been rescued from the forces of Cia and Ganondorf, there is going to be a Heroes’ Ball in a week’s time to thank all of those who fought to save the land. While most of the heroes live close to Castle Town, Linkle is being lodged in the castle until the ball because her village is so distant. I’m also throwing out the whole Windwaker arc that was tacked onto the end of the main story because HW often reads as a bad fanfic as-is, and those few missions always seemed out of place to me.  
> Please let me know what you like and what direction you would like to see the story head in! I have an outline of the entire fic already, but I'm always up for suggestions. This is my very first fic, and I want to make sure that I do right by these characters and this rarepair. My plan (I'm writing it in chapter installments, so I'll update as I go) is to make this pretty fluffy with a little bit of sexual innuendo and some exploration of what makes these characters so unique and so right for each other.

Zelda cursed the circumstances that had led her to this moment. Borne by a desire to stem the tide of darkness surging out of the Twilight Realm and into the world of light, she had fled Hyrule Castle in a hurry without so much as a note to explain her disappearance. But all of that had left her with little hope and fewer lifelines when she found herself trapped in the semidarkness of the Usurper King’s throne room, the Gate of Souls looming over her and her rapier wet with the blood of the countless foes that that fell portal had already disgorged. She didn’t know how much longer she could hold out before being overtaken.

At that moment, a miracle happened: the doors opened and two figures rushed through. Zelda recognized one of them—Midna, seemingly restored to her true self. But the other, a girl in a green tunic, was someone she had never seen before. She dashed in, crossbows drawn, emptying bolt after bolt into the monsters that bore down on the princess. “You handle the twilight magic—I’ll keep the princess safe!” she yelled at Midna before jumping back into the fray.

Zelda watched the girl in awe as she lay waste to dark phantoms and armored goliaths alike. In almost no time at all, it was over. The battlefield was littered with the bodies of fallen foes, but she and her allies were safe and sound. In the aftermath, the silence in the room was palpable. Midna had run off to work her magic, leaving Zelda alone with the mysterious girl in green. She watched as her hero fidgeted with the crossbows for a moment, reloading them and clipping them onto her boots. Then, she turned around and they locked eyes. For a moment, neither of them said anything. Then, the princess decided to break the silence.

“Thank you. I don’t know who you are, but I owe you my life.”

“No problem! As a hero, it’s only natural that I do the rescuing.”

“May I ask your name? A great evil is laying siege to Hyrule as we speak, and your help would no doubt prove invaluable to our cause.”

“Of course! I’m Linkle. And I’ve been looking all over for you, Princess.”

Zelda was about to respond when the compass hanging around Linkle’s neck started to glow with a blinding light. The hero noticed as well, her expression quickly turning from surprise to recognition.

“Well, I guess I’m needed elsewhere,” she said apologetically. “See you later, princess! I’m so glad that you’re safe.”  She smiled at Zelda and winked before vanishing in a burst of golden light. Only a soft glow lingered where she had stood just moments before.

In the following days, Zelda often thought back to the exact moment in the throne room when she realized that she would be okay. Linkle’s fierce expression during the fight was burned into her mind’s eye—everything from her determined stare to the golden braids that framed her face so perfectly. The coming trials would be the most difficult that the kingdom had faced in Zelda’s lifetime. And every moment that she prepared for the inevitable tribulations ahead, she hoped that she would see her hero once again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Picture, if you will, sitting down to write the first publicly available multi-chapter Zelda/Linkle slashfic in the world. You spend months writing about their interactions as if the first time that they had ever met was at Hyrule Castle after the final battle. After all, this makes the most sense, right? The story makes such a big deal out of Linkle trying to find Zelda and Hyrule Castle, why would it have them meet before that? Surely if something had happened between them, the game would have them share some dialogue and maybe even have an illustrated cutscene to mark the occasion.  
> Now, imagine your surprise when you play through Linkle's path again in Hyrule Warriors and find out that while the game treats it as a tiny plot point, THEY ACTUALLY MET ONCE BEFORE. Like, Linkle saved Zelda 3/4 of the way through the game and they didn't even share a single line of dialogue. Like what even
> 
> Long story short, I wrote a prologue to try and capture that moment and tweaked some of the early chapters to adapt to that revelation, because I really want to be faithful to the material even if Hyrule Warriors itself plays like a bad LOZ fanfic. I hope that you like the changes I've made!


	2. Lost Again

Clad in a white nightgown and adorable pom-pommed sleeping cap, Linkle wandered through the darkened stone passageways of Hyrule Castle. Most of the gaslit flames had been dimmed or put out entirely by the castle’s hardworking staff hours ago, and the drowsy heroine was enjoying the sensation of soft carpet underfoot as she turned down yet another corridor. What she wasn’t enjoying was how long she had been looking for the bathroom. How many times had she followed the wrong hallway to a dead end in the last twenty minutes? Three times? Four? It wasn’t her fault that she had such a bad sense of direction. Well, maybe it was. But she wouldn’t let that get to her! She knew that she was finally on the right track. As she walked, she took some time to think back on the events of that evening.

After fending off the surprise assault on the castle, Linkle stood with Impa for what seemed like hours as she waited for the princess to come back. The Shiekah general had insisted on Linkle meeting Zelda so that she could be recognized for her deeds, and she had no complaints! The whole time that she was recounting the tale of her journey to Impa, she was buzzing with excitement. She had been waiting for this moment ever since she had been unceremoniously swept from the Twilight Realm and could still picture Zelda in her mind’s eye, the princess practically glowing in ethereal beauty under the dusk illumination of the realm. Saving her had been electrifying, and she had fought harder in that throne room than she had ever fought before. Having to leave so soon was a cruel twist of fate, and she was thrilled that she would soon see the princess once again.

After what felt like hours, a trio of figures became visible on the horizon silhouetted against the glow of the setting sun. They quickly crossed Hyrule Field on horseback, and one peeled off towards the barracks as they drew close. Finally, Linkle was able to see two people slowing to a trot just before the cobbles of the castle entryway. There was an interesting-looking woman with blue hair and a thick leather-bound spellbook riding one of the horses, and on the other…she was dumbstruck as she saw the princess, even more beautiful than she had remembered. Her windswept blonde hair was illuminated in a halo around her head by the sunset, her dress fluttered gracefully in the wind, and her gorgeous blue eyes were framed by one of the most heavenly faces that Linkle had ever seen. Was this a princess, or a Goddess? Taking all of this in, her heart beat fast in her chest and she became uncomfortably aware of her breathing as she struggled to think of what to say. It couldn’t be too casual, but if she sounded too formal, what kind of impression would that make? Oh crap what do I say she’s stepping down from her horse and coming this way. Wow she’s definitely at least a head taller than me. Oh no she’s almost here---

…

“Impa, we managed to return the sword and seal away the forces of evil once more. Now all that remains to be done is…

…

“Linkle, is that you? I thought that I would never see you again.”

“Yep! It’s me, princess. I’ve finally found you again.”

Thinking back on that moment, Linkle felt anxiety welling up in her throat. Had she been too casual, in anticipation of picking things back up where they had left off in the Twilight Realm? Did Zelda resent her for leaving her side when there were still battles to be fought? The princess might think that she’s some sort of flake, or worse—a country bumpkin, just a naïve girl from a farming village. The princess had seemed attentive as she listened to Linkle’s story and her voice was soft and kind when she invited the hero to spend the next week in the castle, but that might not mean anything. Maybe princesses are fake-nice to lots of people? She just didn’t know. Ugh.

As she reached out to grab the handle for what she was sure was the right door, all that Linkle could think about was the princess’s beautiful blue eyes. She was so lost in her thoughts that it took a few seconds to register that the door she had just opened didn’t lead to the bathroom. In fact, this was the most un-bathroomy place that she could have ended up. Standing in the doorway, she saw a warmly decorated room with a tall oak dresser, enormous floor-to-ceiling windows, and a canopy bed with its curtains firmly bundled and tied to the bedposts. However, her focus was less on the furniture and more on the room’s occupant: the princess was sitting up in bed, wearing a silk nightgown and reading a book by lamplight. The next few seconds passed in slow motion as Zelda reacted to the sound of the door, looked up, and finally noticed Linkle. And as the wayward heroine realized her mistake all too late, she found herself looking into those eyes once again.


	3. Can I Ask You a Question?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Linkle and Zelda have an eye-opening conversation.

Linkle didn’t know what to say. Standing there in surprise and confusion, she looked at the princess speechlessly for several seconds before Zelda herself decided to speak up.

“Linkle? I didn’t expect to see you up this late. Is there something that you need?”

“Uh…no! I mean…I’m sorry, princess. I was trying to get to the bathroom but I kept making wrong turns and then I thought I found it but it was actually your room and I’m so sorry—”

“Please! Don’t be so hard on yourself. It’s completely alright. Actually, I’m glad to see you.”

“You…you are?”

“Absolutely. I was having trouble getting to sleep, with everything that just happened. Do you ever feel like a hundred thoughts are competing for space in your head? I tried to close my eyes, but it wasn’t working. And lulling myself to sleep with a book isn’t really helping either. So it’s really very nice that you’re here—it means that I have someone to talk to, and a welcome distraction from being stuck in my own head.”

“Well, I’m happy to help, princess. Any time that I get to spend with you is great, I figured that you would be busy for most of the time that I’m here.”

“Please, call me Zelda. Would you like to sit down?”

Zelda closed her book and motioned to a spot on the side of her bed. Linkle, blushing a little, nodded so enthusiastically that her braids bounced up and down a bit. She sat down at the edge of the princess’s bed, her heart beating a little bit faster. _This is amazing! I’ll talk about anything that she wants to, it’s just so great that I get to spend more time with her._ The bathroom now far from her thoughts, Linkle leaned against one of Zelda’s bedposts and smiled.

“Linkle, can I ask you a question?”

“Of course, Zelda! What do you want to know?”

“Well, I admired the certainty that you spoke with earlier when you were telling me about your journey. All of those places that you traveled to in search of me, and it doesn’t seem like you wavered even once. Was there ever a time in your past when people expected you to follow a different path?”

Linkle thought for a second before answering. “Actually, yes. When I was a kid, I knew that I was going to grow up and become the Legendary Hero. My grandma told me stories about the heroes that came before me, and I even have the magic compass to prove I’m the next one! But when I was older and wanted to learn how to fight, nobody would teach me. They said that I was better off just marrying someone in the village and becoming a farmer. So I taught myself by getting a couple of crossbows and practicing with them while I was caring for the cuccos. And look at what’s happened since then! I knew that I was meant to be a hero this entire time, and now it’s finally come true.”

Zelda, a little nonplussed by this response, took a moment to think of how to reply. “Wow! I knew that you were determined, but I didn’t know that it went back that far.”

“Also, there was that time when I was a kid that everyone thought I was a boy but I knew that I was a girl…but I cleared that up really quickly when I got older. It’s hard to say no to a woman dual-wielding crossbows. But that’s not a huge deal, the magical destiny stuff is much more important!”

“Wait…they thought you were a boy? I don’t understand. You’re beautiful, if you don’t mind me saying so. Why would they think that?”

Linkle blushed again at this, but tried her best to hide it. “Thank you, prin—I mean, Zelda. I guess I looked more like a boy when I was a little kid or something, but I’ve always known I was a girl and most people forgot pretty quickly when I got a little older. The couple people in my village who wouldn’t let it go stopped talking about it for some reason after I showed up to the tavern on darts night. I’m still pissed off about not winning, something about being required to throw the darts with my hands. I don’t get what the big deal is—a crossbow takes just as much skill. But really, none of this is super important. I actually forget about it most of the time.”

“Then I will too.” The princess yawned. “I suppose it’s finally time for me to go to sleep. You should too, Linkle. Oh! And the bathroom is out the door, make a left turn and keep going for a bit. You’ll find it on your right.”

Linkle nodded to the princess and got up to leave.

“I hope that you sleep well, Linkle. And thanks for talking with me for a while.” The princess smiled.

“No problem, Zelda! I hope that you have a good sleep too. See you in the morning!”

The heroine walked back into the hallway, shutting the door softly behind her before following Zelda’s directions and finally finding the bathroom. She was surprised to find that it was just a few doors down from the guest room that she was staying in, but she was glad that she got there the way that she did. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have gotten to see Zelda again. As she lay down shortly afterwards and closed her eyes, she couldn’t help but smile. _Beautiful…she called me beautiful._


	4. Fond Memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zelda's conversation with Linkle has her thinking back to her own childhood, and to an experience that had somehow just felt right for her.
> 
> AN: Happy Day After Trans Day of Visibility (DATDOV)! I was planning on finishing this chapter yesterday, but ironically ended up wasting that time on Hyrule Warriors instead. Does anybody else pair Zelda and Linkle together as playable characters whenever there are multiple slots available?

Zelda let out a tired sigh after she was sure that Linkle had left earshot of the room. Part of her had wanted the conversation to go on for longer, to say more to her chance companion. Linkle had been so forthcoming about her past, and here Zelda was, so much to share and so much to ask, but too uncertain to do so. There was a moment after Linkle was finished talking about her gender that she was bursting to say how similar her own experiences were—that while her destiny to lead Hyrule as its eventual queen has always been a constant in her life, there had been times when the impossibly high expectations for how she needed to act, dress, and present herself just felt wrong on a visceral level. Sometimes, so wrong that she wasn’t even sure that she liked being called a woman. But between Linkle’s adorable puppy-dog eyes and her own anxiety over the subject, she had decided to end the conversation early.

If anything, the time that Zelda had spent with Linkle just added new questions to those already in her head—and made those that had already been there all the sharper. But she had a kingdom to run in the morning, so she turned off her bedside light and closed her eyes. However, it is often in the stillness before true sleep that the most intrusive thoughts emerge.

On a similar night ten years prior, a teenage Zelda was preparing to do something new, reckless, and altogether Not Allowed. Her father had just put her to bed, and she had feigned sleep for as long as it took the sound of his footsteps to grow distant down the long corridor outside of her room. Then, still wide awake, she opened her eyes and let them adjust as she sat up in the darkness. Blindly fishing around in the lining of her pillowcase, she withdrew a glowing circular pendant—a Shiekah charm carved from luminous stone that had been gifted to her by her newly-appointed attendant.

 _“If you’re going to do this, Princess, make sure to be careful,”_ A twenty-something Impa had told her in private. _“I can do nothing to help you if you’re discovered, and you’ll have some difficult questions to answer. But I believe in you—I haven’t yet been able to keep you from something you want, and I doubt that anybody else, save the Golden Goddesses themselves, would have any better luck.”_

Zelda smiled as she thought back on Impa’s last words before they parted ways for the night, but her heart still thrummed audibly in her ears as she held the pendant up and experimentally panned it around the walls of her bedroom. Was this still something that she wanted to do, she asked herself? There was a lot at stake here, most of which the relative freedom that she had under the first attendant that had taken her seriously in a long time. The answer came back almost instantly; yes, more than anything else she had wanted in her entire life.

With that, she turned to face the edge of her bed and placed her feet onto the well-worn carpet. Pulling herself to her full height, she tiptoed quietly to her dresser and pulled out the bottom drawer, setting it carefully onto the floor. She pulled out several stacks of undershirts, setting them down neatly before reaching into the drawer again. Her nails skimmed the smooth wood until they finally caught on an indentation, which she pulled up on to reveal the false bottom that Impa had installed days prior.

Zelda’s heartbeat quickened as she reached into the previously concealed compartment and drew out a meticulously folded soldier’s outfit from the nearby barracks, then a roll of bandages. Her hands shook in the blue-green light of her charm as she bound back her developing breasts with gauze and put on the plain slacks, chainmail, and tunic of a newly recruited soldier from Hyrule’s prestigious army. Her hair tied into a bun and tucked into a soldier’s cap, she opened her window, walked out onto the second-story balcony, located the sturdy rope that she had tied onto the railing, and lowered it off the edge. Tonight was sparring night for this year’s initiates, and with the secret training that Impa had been giving her, she was determined to win.

Looking back on that evening, Zelda barely gave any thought to the enormous margin she won by or the confusion of the castle guards as they puzzled over where the mysterious victor had disappeared to. No. Her focus, both in the past and again while falling asleep tonight, was on how right it had felt to wear that outfit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Zelda went through so many attendants as a kid because everyone before Impa either got in trouble for not knowing where she was and got fired, or got so exhausted keeping track of her that they quit. Teenage Zelda didn't like being treated like a child.)


	5. Admiring the Landscape

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zelda spends a peaceful morning admiring the castle grounds; Linkle receives an exciting letter.

The next morning, Zelda took her time waking up. First, she was aware of the faint cadence of birdsong coming from the trees on the castle grounds. Then, still wrapped tightly in her blankets, she felt the sun’s warmth streaming through the skylight and found that she could make out its faint glow through her eyelids. She spent one last sleepy moment tracing the contours of her carved headboard with one finger before finally sitting up, opening her eyes, and brushing the hair out of her eyes to look around the room.

Stretching in the silver glow of the early morning light, she looked out on familiar surroundings—furniture that had been with her since she was very young, a floral painting inherited from her mother, and the beautiful stained-glass windows set in the stone walls of her bedroom. Her muscles protesting, she kicked off her comforter and slid her legs off the side of the bed. Then, finally standing, she walked over to the balcony windows and opened them to look out on the landscape beyond the castle.

The sun had just risen, illuminating a pristine sky of pale blue. Down below stretched the castle grounds and the expanse of Hyrule Field, wild grasses and small groves of trees swaying in a fair breeze that greeted Zelda as she stepped out onto the overlook. It was hard to believe that this beautiful vista had been beset by monsters only yesterday. Notwithstanding Ganondorf’s final assault, she tried to picture what Linkle had told her about hordes of lizalfoses, leaderless and desperate; and a monstrous King Dondongo rampaging through it all, just barely brought to a halt before it reached the castle proper. Looking out on everything now, it all seemed so serene. How could this peace have ever been shattered?

Then, a figure caught her eye. Dressed in a forest-green tunic, Linkle had blended in perfectly against the castle’s sweeping lawn. But now that Zelda had seen her, she was surprised that she hadn’t noticed sooner. In the early morning sunlight, the hero was facing away from the castle and stretching. Slowly, her arms met above her head as she leaned sideways, folding her torso down the length of each of her legs in turn. Each time she bent down, the soft rise of her butt peeked out just a little bit from the athletic shorts that she wore underneath her skirt. Zelda caught herself staring and, feeling a bit embarrassed with herself, eventually managed to look away.

 _Okay, she’s cute,_ she admitted to herself. _But there isn’t much that I can do about it. I have my responsibilities, and she’s only here for a week before she returns to her village. I should do myself a favor and stop now._ She paused for a moment before another thought struck her: _however, there’s nothing wrong about getting to know her a little better. As friends, I mean._

That last thought lingering in her head, she strode to her wardrobe and chose her clothes for the day before heading to breakfast. After all, this was hardly something to consider on an empty stomach.

It was mid-day when Linkle found herself visiting the barn where the groundskeeper had agreed to house her cuccos while she stayed at the castle. Opening the door, she relished the musty smell of so many animals intermingling in one place. She briefly stopped to pet a beautiful chestnut horse before getting ready to continue to the outdoor pens fenced in on the other side of the barn. Just as she started making her way over, she heard someone call her name. She turned around in time to see a servant in the traditional castle uniform standing in the doorway.

“Linkle? I’m Athel, one of the princesses’ attendants. She wanted me to bring you this letter.”

“Oh! Um…thanks, Athel! I’ll read it as soon as I can.”

“Great. I’m gonna go back, lots to get done at the castle.”

Linkle nodded and watched as Athel walked back across the castle grounds to complete her other tasks. Then, she turned her attention to the envelope. It was official-looking and made from paper dyed a beautiful shade of pink. On the back, there was an elegant wax seal bearing the Hylian Wingcrest. What was so important that Zelda couldn’t wait until she was back in the castle? She worked her finger under the fold and tore it open, pulling out a piece of textured blue stationary.

 _Linkle, I hope that this letter finds you well_. _This evening, I will be having a dinner with the knights who worked so hard to defend the castle. I very much enjoyed our conversation last night, and would love it if you were to attend as my personal guest. Yours, Zelda._

Wow! Zelda wanted to have dinner with her? She had been thinking about last night ever since she woke up, wondering if she had volunteered too much information or done something to weird the princess out. But here it was, written in ink: proof positive that she hadn’t chased the princess away.

Earlier that day, she had eaten lunch in the barracks with the soldiers. They were a fun, jovial bunch. One of them, a young man named Link, had apparently been defending the princess while Linkle had been looking for Hyrule Castle with her magic compass. He wasn’t very talkative, but something about him seemed familiar to her…she couldn’t place it, but she had caught herself thinking about how badly she wished she had been the one by Zelda’s side through the recent war.

She had been expecting to eat in the barracks again that evening, but this would be so much better! Linkle had only met Zelda for the first time yesterday, but she already wanted to spend as much time as possible with her. And with the princess’ tight schedule both supervising the repair of the wounded kingdom and preparing for the Heroes’ Ball, she had been afraid that she wouldn’t get much of a chance.

Linkle balled up her fists in anticipation. If she was going to have dinner with Zelda, she would need to get ready! She dashed towards her cuccos, determined to tend to them as quickly as possible. The last thing she wanted to do was keep the princess waiting.


	6. Things Left Unsaid

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zelda and Linkle have a pleasant conversation at dinner, but the princess wishes that she could say more.

Zelda walked briskly towards the banquet hall, the click of her gilded heels echoing off the walls of the corridor. She had planned on being there fashionably early, but knowing that Linkle would be coming made her more anxious than she should have been. Between retouching her makeup multiple times and repeatedly fussing with her hair (she likes to tell people she wakes up like this, but it takes work to look this effortless), she lost track of time. It seemed to her like no time had passed at all since she had sat down at her vanity, but suddenly there were ten minutes until dinner and she had to hurry if she wanted to make it there on time.

 _Don’t worry, Zelda;_ she thought to herself as she approached the large oaken doors of the hall. _It’s not like she’s going to notice if you have a hair out of place. And why do you care, anyway? You’re just acquaintances, chatting over a nice meal. There’s nothing to worry about._ She checked her pocket watch again—five minutes until guests would start arriving. See? Everything’s alright. But despite her efforts to reassure herself, she couldn’t help but feel flustered as she pushed the doors open and walked inside.

The hall looked perfect. Polished tile floors, inviting oaken tables, and light from the torches dancing warmly in the wall sconces. Even the chandelier overhead was radiant, its quartz crystals sparkling in the firelight. Only one thing looked out of place.

“Linkle, what are you doing here so early?” Zelda asked in dismay. “I hope you haven’t been waiting long.”

“Oh! Hi, Zelda! It’s no problem, I figured that I would get here beforehand to help set up. Athel’s been telling me about life in the castle.” The princess’ attendant peeked out from the open kitchen doorway and waved.

“You really didn’t have to do this. You’re a guest here, you don’t need to help keep the castle running during your stay. I’d rather you be as comfortable as possible while you’re here.”

“But this kind of thing _is_ what makes me feel at home! I set the table and cleaned up for my grandma every night before she passed, and at town banquets, I’m always the first to volunteer for kitchen duty. I like helping out…especially if it’s for you.” She set down the last napkin and looked up at Zelda, blushing a little.

“Well…in that case, thank you.” Zelda smiled at Linkle a little bit sheepishly. She barely had a moment to process her thoughts on the situation before she heard a hinge creak behind her. Turning around, she watched as the first of the knights walked through the doorway in their formal regalia. “Welcome, welcome!” She said, falling into a familiar false-cheerful cadence. “Please take a seat, dinner will start shortly.”

Soon afterward, the room was full of excited discussion between the knights as they enjoyed the delicious food set out before them. There were mouth-watering meats, fresh-baked loaves of bread, and everything in between—hardly anything like the meals that were served for dinner at the barracks. Zelda had made sure to sit across from Linkle so that they could talk during the meal. After they had filled their plates and taken their first few bites, they focused back on one another.

“So, how have you liked your stay at the castle so far?” Zelda asked. Linkle still had her mouth full, but she nodded enthusiastically and made a positive-sounding grunt. She started chewing more quickly, took a sip of water, and swallowed. “Sorry! Food in my mouth. I love it here—I wish I didn’t have to go home right after the ball.” Linkle studied a small constellation of freckles near the bridge of Zelda’s nose before she caught herself and looked away, hoping that the princess hadn’t noticed.

“Well, maybe we can make arrangements for you to come back on holiday now and again. You’re great company, and it might be fun to spend more time together once Hyrule has rebuilt and I have more time on my hands.” Zelda smiled, trying not to linger too long on Linkle’s soft lips before glancing elsewhere.

“But I think I’m getting a bit ahead of myself. Actually, I was wondering if I could get your advice on a few things for the banquet. I’m in charge of planning it, and the only other people I can ask work for me. I need some honest opinions.”

“Sure, Zelda! Whatever you need. What’s the first thing?”

“Well, first off I wanted to ask about the tablecloths. I want to choose colors that compliment one another, but that have some significance. I know that I want to use green, but I need one or two more colors to go with it.”

“Good choice! I mean, I’m biased,” Linkle said, gesturing at her tunic. “But green is a great color. What about…blue and red? We could do a Golden Goddesses color scheme.”

“I considered that, but even in her infinite wisdom, I don’t think that Nayru thought much about color theory. Green and blue are a lovely combination, but red clashes with both of them.”

“Well, how about we keep the green and blue and add some gold? For the Triforce, and the Wingcrest,” Linkle responded. “Gold’s another favorite of mine.” She felt the compass hanging around her neck for a moment before releasing it and letting it sway gently.

“That’s a wonderful idea! I feel like people would appreciate that,” Zelda responded happily.

“Great! Do you have any other questions?” Linkle asked.

 _What would your lips feel like on mine,_ Zelda thought absentmindedly. Embarrassed at herself, she rallied and answered. “Only—only one more right now. I was planning on having a chamber orchestra play. Do you think that would compliment the event, or would it be too much?”

Linkle looked thoughtful for a second before responding. “I think that would be fine. I’m sure that people would like the music, but maybe play a few different kinds? Classical songs are great, but a little bit of fiddle would make it feel just like home for me. It might even get more people onto the dance floor.”

“I actually hadn’t thought of that! Thank you so much, I’ll get on it.” Zelda looked like she might have something more to say, so Linkle waited patiently. However, the princess seemed to abandon whatever she had been thinking to ask after a moment. With nothing to say, the two of them sat in awkward silence for a second until Linkle eventually thought to speak up.

“It was so nice of you to have this dinner tonight. The food at the barracks is nice, but this is much better. And…I really like talking with you.”

Zelda blushed and smiled at this before the rest of the sentence caught up with her. “Wait. You haven’t been fed in the castle? I’m so sorry, it must have slipped my mind. You’re a guest, you shouldn’t have to walk all the way to the barracks for a decent meal. I usually eat on my own, but the servants always have meals together in this room. They get served the same thing that I do, so there’s no way that you’ll go hungry.”

As Linkle beamed and thanked Zelda for her kindness, the princess thought regretfully about all the questions that went unasked. She wanted to know more about the girl sitting in front of her, but she didn’t want to come across as nosy. And while she had hoped that a friendly interaction would have quelled her blossoming feelings for Linkle, it had done only the opposite.

 _What am I going to do?_ She thought to herself. _I can’t act on this. I can’t even tell her; who knows what she would say? The best thing for me to do is to busy myself with matters of state until the ball, and give her a warm farewell when she finally heads back to her village._ But deep down, a small part of her hoped that there was a better way.


	7. A New Friend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Linkle and Lana finally meet and have a heart-to-heart; The hero in green discovers a sinister plot.

It was just after sunrise, and the day was beginning to heat up as Linkle finished her morning stretches. After a nice breakfast enjoyed earlier with the castle staff, she was in no hurry to head inside and decided instead to savor the start of another beautiful day. Breathing in deeply, she picked a direction and set off at a leisurely pace around the outside of the castle.

As she went on her way, Linkle took some time to enjoy the calm that had set in after the disquiet of the recent war. She admired how springy the grass felt under her boots and listened to the chorus of trees swaying back and forth in the wind. The sun filled her with renewed vigor, and the sky was a gorgeous, flawless blue.

But as she rounded a corner around the castle’s outer wall, she was met with something of an even more vibrant hue. It was the woman that had rode in with Zelda, dressed in the same interesting outfit that she had been wearing the other day. Her long blue cape was fluttering in the wind behind her, and the sunlight reflecting off her bright white leggings and electric hair made her a little difficult to look at. Squinting at her in the sudden light, Linkle saw that she was standing over a large metal circle and talking softly to herself as she flipped through her spellbook. Not one to pass up a chance encounter, the hero happily approached.

“Hey! How’re you doing?”

The woman gave a little start as she heard Linkle’s voice, but she looked up with a smile. “Hi! You’re Linkle, right? I’m Lana. And I’m just trying to get this summoning gate to work. It should be pretty cool if I can get it right.” She thumbed through her book again and muttered a few more words, electricity arcing from the pages to the gate. The runes carved into the metal glowed for a second, then went dark again. “Actually, I could use a break. Wanna walk and talk?”

“Sure! It would be a waste if we went the entire week without getting to know one another. Let’s go.” They started to walk in the direction that Linkle had already been heading, treading alongside the castle in comfortable quiet for a few minutes. Then, the hero in green decided to break the silence.

“So…anything on your mind?”

“You know, the usual. I have a lot of personal projects to work on now that the war is over, and I think that we’re all still a little shell-shocked from the fighting. Also…there’s someone I’m trying to get over.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“Yeah, that might help. It’s this boy. I’ve known him for a long time, and I care a lot about him. But I don’t really think that he sees me the way that I see him. I’m just trying to accept that and move on.”

“I’m really sorry to hear that. Not being loved back by someone is never fun, but it sounds like you’re dealing with it in a healthy way. Are you at least able to stay friends?”

“Yeah! I’m actually pretty happy about that. Sometimes we don’t get the people we think we deserve. But if I can keep him in my life, even if we’re just friends…I guess that’s better than losing him altogether. I’m trying really hard to stay strong, because I had a…a friend in a similar situation. To say that she didn’t handle it well is a bit of an understatement.”

“Well, that sounds kind of sensitive and I wouldn’t want to press you on it. But, um, can I tell you about something kind of personal?”

“Sure! I promise I won’t tell anyone.”

“Thanks. Well, here goes. I think I have feelings for Zelda.” Linkle blushed as she finally said out loud what she had been thinking for days. Lana was caught off-guard, but did her best to hide her surprise.

“When did you first know?”

“It probably started when I rescued her from the Twilight Realm during the war, but I really only started being aware of it after I began staying in the castle a couple days ago. She’s just so beautiful, and so amazing. But I don’t know if she feels the same way about me. And I don’t know how to ask. I’ve never felt like this about anybody before.”

“Hmm. You’re right, this is tricky. Well, first off, I think that you need to hold onto that feeling. Love is something that needs to be treasured whether you’re sure about it or not. And while there’s always the possibility that she doesn’t feel the same way you do, you shouldn’t dismiss the possibility out of hand. Find the right time to say something. If Zelda likes you back, she’ll find a way to communicate that. If not, maybe you can stay friends.”

“That sounds like a good idea! Thanks, Lana. I think I really needed to get that off my chest, so it was nice to have you here. Friends?” She held her hand out for a high-five.

“Friends.” Lana connected hands with Linkle in a satisfying slap. “Well, I think I’m going to head back and take another crack at that gate. Will I see you around?”

“Sure! Let’s meet up again and talk about something other than our love problems.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Lana chuckled. “Alright, see ya!” Lana bounded back in the direction she had come while Linkle stood still for a moment, taking in the fresh air and thinking about the conversation she had just had. Just then, she heard something interesting coming from near the castle.

“So, did you manage to get it?”

The conversation was faint, and Linkle needed to get closer in order to really hear what was being said. Looking around, she noticed that she was near the castle gardens. Quietly, she stepped over the low picket fence and hid behind a rosebush. Peeking out, she saw two guards sitting on a bench by a stand of hydrangeas. She quickly shrank back behind the bush before they had a chance to notice her.

“…really sure about this?”

“Yeah, definitely. The princess needs to go. She inherited the kingdom from her father, it’s not like she has any past experience running an army or administering resources for citizens. And look at what just happened! People _died_ , Cambo. Once she’s gone, we can put a general in charge of the kingdom that actually knows what they’re doing.”

“I guess you’re right, Toren. We can’t have another war like the one that just happened. It would ruin us. Plus, this plan is really easy. We’re just poisoning her drink at the Heroes’ Ball, right?”

“Yep. It’s the perfect crime; nobody will be able to trace it back to us. For the safety of Hyrule, yeah?”

“Uh-huh. For the safety of Hyrule.”

Linkle could hardly believe what she had just heard. Zelda had only just come back into her life. Those soldiers didn’t know what they were talking about—the kingdom had literally been under siege by a dark sorceress and the literal incarnation of darkness! Anybody would have struggled to snatch a victory from such a dire situation, but the princess had been able to salvage most of Hyrule and save countless civilians. For her to be torn so abruptly and so cruelly from the kingdom…it would break her heart. Struggling to hold back tears, Linkle snuck out of the gardens and raced around to the front of the castle. She had to tell Zelda.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy end-of-Pride Month! I wanted to make sure that I got another chapter posted before June was over and we enter July. You know--Wrath Month. Thank you for all of the kudos--every single one means so much to me.


	8. I'm Here.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Linkle tells Zelda about what she overheard in the castle gardens, and they grow closer together.

Zelda sighed as she thumbed through the pile of expense reports sent to her by the kingdom’s governors, counting the remaining pages again in a desperate bid to try and make the task seem more bearable. She had been in her study for _so long,_ but it seemed like she wasn’t getting any closer to finishing. She looked through one of the windows, contemplating the blue sky and bright sunlight shining through the glass. Maybe just a small break? No. She shook her head and attempted to focus back on the page in front of her. While the recent war had not been her fault, Hyrule’s cities had endured great hardship while she and the others had fought to end the conflict. She couldn’t rest until she had made sure that all of the requested funds were approved for the cities most in need. She was just starting to concentrate again on the parchment’s heavy, uniform print when she heard a gentle knock on the door behind her. “Come in,” she responded.

The brass knob turned, and a moment later Impa was standing in the open doorway with a tray, a teakettle, and a plate of biscuits and finger sandwiches.

“Princess? I figured that you could use something to help you keep going. You’ve worked well through lunch, and I don’t envy you for how much you probably still have on your plate.”

“Thank you so much, Impa. I really needed this—it means a lot that you noticed. Do you want to stay and talk for a bit? I could use some company.”

“I appreciate the offer, but I really need to get back to some of my other duties. Still, I don’t think you’ll have any trouble finding somebody to talk to.” She walked into the room and set the tray down onto a small table by the couch. “This young lady was very insistent that she speak with you immediately. She says that it’s important.” She motioned to the empty doorway. Zelda was confused until a few seconds later, Linkle walked into view and smiled weakly. She looked upset, and the princess felt an immediate wave of concern.

“Linkle? Please come in. Take a seat, help yourself to something on the tray. And thanks again, Impa.” The Shiekah matriarch nodded before walking back out of the room and gently closing the door behind her.

Moments later Zelda and Linkle were sitting next to each other on the couch, one steaming cup of tea in front of each of them on the table. Linkle had put a couple sandwiches onto her plate, but she wasn’t touching them. With another pang of empathy, Zelda again observed how troubled the heroine looked.

“So? What’s wrong, Linkle? Believe me, there’s little that I haven’t heard before.” She took a sip of tea and tried to project an air of calm.

“I, um…” Linkle paused for several seconds, looking like she was trying to wrangle her thoughts into something cohesive. “Well, the thing is. Um.” Another several seconds passed. “Zelda?” The princess smiled reassuringly. “I was walking around outside earlier today, and I overheard two guards talking to each other in the gardens. About…about poisoning you.” Her voice became a bit husky while saying the last three words, and she looked like she was on the verge of tears.

Zelda was caught off-guard, but she tried her best to hide her surprise. “Well, that’s definitely a thing I haven’t heard before,” she said with a forced chuckle. “Tell me everything.”

“Alright. Well, their names were Toren and Cambo, I think. And they were talking about how the deaths during the war were your fault, and they wanted to take you out so that they could put someone else in charge. You should have heard them! They said that the kingdom would be in “safer hands” without you around. I can’t imagine anything safer than you being in charge. I mean, you spent an entire war fighting on the _front lines_! How many rulers can say they’ve done that?”

Zelda took a deep breath. This was all a bit much—she could take a murder plot in stride, it wasn’t like she hadn’t had to defend herself countless times in the past weeks from dark forces and defectors alike. But learning that there were people who blamed her personally for the conflict? It really hurt. Still, she wasn’t going to let that show right now—she had to appear strong. “Did they say anything about when they were planning on doing this?”

“The Heroes’ Ball. That’s when they said they would do it. Zelda, if you want me to find them right now, I swear to the Goddesses that I’ll protect you. I don’t want them to hurt you. I won’t let them hurt you. But…everything seems so different now that people aren’t fighting anymore. What do I do?” Linkle’s deep blue eyes were ringed with tears.

“Linkle, is it okay if I hug you?” She nodded, and Zelda leaned forward to wrap her arms around the girl in the green tunic. Linkle hugged her back. Immediately, as if a dam had been broken, Linkle collapsed around the princess and started to sob. She hugged her as snugly as she could, and Zelda tightened her own grip to match. She felt Linkle’s tears soaking into the fabric on her shoulder, but that didn’t matter right now. This is where she needed to be. In this moment, in this embrace. “It’s okay. I’m here. Don’t worry, we’ll figure this out together.”


	9. An Evening Together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the aftermath of Linkle's bombshell reveal, she and Zelda discuss what they should do about the assassination. Later, they open up and bond while sitting underneath the stars.

After the events of that afternoon, there was no way that Zelda could tell Linkle to leave the study. Instead, she had dinner brought up to the room while they talked about how to handle the assassination plot. As the sky stained itself pink and the gas lights came to life throughout the room, the princess and her hero discussed the situation between bites of fresh sizzlefin trout.

“Can’t we just lock them up right now? I mean, we know what they’re planning,” Linkle suggested. Her eyes were still red from tears, but her voice was much more animated now.

“I would love to do that, but it wouldn’t be the wisest course,” Zelda responded. “We have no real proof of what they’re plotting, no idea where they’re hiding the poison, and there may be more people involved than just them. While I hate to think about it, it is possible that plenty of other people blame me for what happened during the war. If that’s truly the case, then locking up dissidents without evidence would only serve to embolden their cause.”

“Then we catch them in the act! We wait until the ball, and then get them while they’re putting poison into your drink. That way, there’s no way that they can say it wasn’t them!”

“That could work! Alright, let’s talk through the details so that we get it right.”

They lost track of time as they discussed strategy, the sky growing inky black beyond the windows of the study as the sun set for the night. Their discussion jumped back and forth from serious to silly in an instant, and Zelda laughed for a solid minute when Linkle said that they should just hire someone to jump out and do a quick oil painting of the crucial moment. She didn’t think her joke was really all that funny, but she was glad the princess got a kick out of it. Eventually, they decided to get some fresh air. With Zelda leading the way, they walked down the hallway and out onto a balcony overlooking the grounds. The cool night air was refreshing, and Linkle smiled as she watched fireflies float through the darkness. Soon, they were sitting beside one another on a stone bench and looking up at the stars together.

“Linkle, can I tell you something personal? I haven’t felt comfortable talking about it before, but I feel like you would listen.”

“Sure! Whatever it is, I promise that I won’t tell anyone.”

“Thanks, I appreciate that.” Zelda smiled, her lips faintly illuminated by the light of the crescent moon. “Well, I just wanted to say how much I love the ease with which you’re able to be yourself—it doesn’t come as easily to me. Maybe it’s because I have so much responsibility and I’m afraid of looking bad in front of people, or maybe it’s because I don’t really know what I want for myself yet. But the truth is, since I was very little there have been times when I’ve felt like I was meant to grow up as a man. And yet, at other times, I feel every part the woman that I have always been expected to be. I wish that I could say I’ve grown out of it, but I never have. Is that alright? I want it to be alright so badly, but I feel like just telling myself it’s okay feels hollow.”

“Zelda, It’s more than alright—it’s amazing! It means that you’re you! It sounds like you know exactly what you want, it’s just a question of whether you can work up the courage to love that part of yourself and let it shine. Whether there are others who feel the way that you do or not, you can’t let anybody tell you how you should or shouldn’t exist.”

“You’re sure? You don’t think any less of me?”

“How could I think less of you? Spending the last few days with you has been unbelievable. You’ve changed in my head from some faceless, towering silhouette I hoped to meet someday into a real person. You’re kind-hearted, you have a great sense of humor, you’re beautiful, and frankly, I think that you could be handsome too. You’re amazing, Zelda. And if a country bumpkin like me can see that, I’m sure that other people can too.”

“You’re not a bumpkin.” Zelda barely got the words out with how much she was trying to hold back her tears. They felt hot behind her eyes.

“What did you say?”

“I said…I said that I want to kiss you, Linkle.”

“Finally! Why didn’t you say so earlier?”

Zelda turned in her seat so that her face was just inches apart from Linkle's, and reached out to touch her cheek. Savoring the moment, they both leaned in slowly until their lips were touching—Zelda’s, soft and pillowy; Linkle’s, supple and firm. They sat that way for an eternity, occasionally shifting their mouths ever so slightly to lock their lips in place again and again. Zelda tasted Linkle’s hot, sweet breath, and Linkle could smell the princess’s fragrant perfume mixed with the scent of her skin. After they drew apart, they held hands and sat in silence, Zelda cradling Linkle against her body until a telltale scarlet light started to bleed into the horizon.

After Linkle walked Zelda back up to her room, the princess busied herself by closing her curtains and changing into her nightgown. Staying up all night had been exhausting, but it had been worth every second. Zelda slipped into bed feeling complete in a way that she could barely remember ever feeling before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this chapter and the one before it in the same evening, because I caught the writing bug and really really wanted Zelda and Linkle to have their first kiss before I went to bed. 
> 
> To be 100% clear, I'm characterizing Zelda as genderfluid. It makes perfect sense--she spent a good part of Hyrule Warriors as Sheik, despite the fact that she wasn't really hiding from anybody in particular like she was in OoT. Why else would she have done it if it hadn't felt right? She saw an opportunity to feel more like herself and took it. Do you agree? Disagree? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below and I'll try my best to respond!


End file.
